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Montreal Canadiens claims centre Jeff Halpern from Rangers

New York Rangers goaltender Martin Biron makes a save against Montreal Canadiens' David Desharnais, right, as Rangers' Jeff Halpern defends during first period NHL hockey action in Montreal, Saturday, February 23, 2013. (THE CANADIAN PRESS / Graham Hughes)

The Canadian Press
Published Saturday, March 23, 2013 2:46PM EDT

MONTREAL - The Montreal Canadiens claimed centre Jeff Halpern off waivers from the New York Rangers on Saturday.

Halpern, 36, a checking forward who is strong on faceoffs, had one assist and was minus-5 in 30 games for New York this season.

He is earning a pro-rated US$700,000 this season and can become an unrestricted free agent in the summer.

This will be his second stint in Montreal. The Washington, D.C., native had 11 goals and 15 assists in 72 games after he signed as a free agent with the Canadiens for the 2010-11 season.

He returned to the Washington Capitals as a free agent the following season, then signed with the Rangers last summer.

The five-foot-11 200-pound Halpern had a career-high 21 goals with Washington in 2000-01 and had a high of 46 points with the Capitals in 2003-04.